RTOs - Registered Training Organisations
Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) are formally approved to teach, assess and issue vocational education and training qualifications that are recognised all over Australia. There are two types of RTOs:
- TAFE institutes: public sector organisations that are Victoria's largest providers of post-compulsory education and training
- Registered Training Organisations (RTO's): private organisations that provide government-funded training and/or fee-for-service training. They include group training companies, commercial institutions, adult and community education organisations and industry training centres.
There are more than 1100 private RTOs in Victoria.
How to get started
Deciding on what course you want to study is the first step. Talk to school career coordinators, people in the industry and employers to find out more about study and work options available for the career area you want to study in.
Websites that can help you identify what course you want to do include:
- myfuture (http://www.myfuture.edu.au) lists a range of education and training options for just about every occupation or career path you could think of.
- Job Guide (http://jobguide.dest.gov.au/) lists about 1500 jobs and the education and training you need to do them. You can also work out which jobs suit you best, based on your interests and abilities
Choosing a training provider
Once you have decided on the course you want to do you then need to find out who provides the course and whether you meet the entry requirements.
Great websites for finding out about available courses include:
- myfutures courses and programs search - Victoria (http://www.myfuture.edu.au/services/default.asp?FunctionID=5302&Action=Advanced&State=VIC). This section of the myfutures website lets you search for Victorian courses alphabetically, by industry or by learning area
- TAFE course directory (http://www.tafe.vic.gov.au/) - The online directory provides a searchable database on the courses provided Victorian TAFEs and Registered Training Organisations (RTO).
Registered Training Organisations provide a variety of study options from studying full time to part time courses and single subjects. RTO's also provide study options for apprenticeships and traineeships.
Registered Training Organisations advertise their courses in newspapers, industry journals, and on radio and television. They may also have direct relationships with an employer or industry area where they are the recommended trainer.
More information
Find a Registered Training Organisation (RTO)
You may search for a RTO in Victoria (http://www.ntis.gov.au/Default.aspx?/find/advanced) on the National Training Information Service website.
The DE&T Office of Training and Tertiary Education website provides a list of Victorian RTO's that receive government funding (http://gftp.otte.vic.gov.au/gftp/index.asp)
Training Provider search and broswer (http://www.training.com.au/portal/site/public/menuitem.61dea3cd2b6b3588a392e51017a62dbc/) on training.com.au website
Other useful sites
National Training Information Service (http://www.ntis.gov.au) – the national register of information on courses, qualifications, Training Packages, units of competency and registered training organisations. Use the NTIS website search to find our if your training provider is registered (http://www.ntis.gov.au/?/find/basic)